When a person is injured in a remote location, rescue workers often are required to hand carry the person on a stretcher to a location where an ambulance or helicopter can be reached. This is particularly true in remote locations consisting of rough terrain such as mountains, and in such circumstances the injured person would be exposed to the elements until the emergency rescue vehicle could be reached. In many instances, the rescue workers take their coats off and place them on the injured person to keep that person warm while being carried on the stretcher.
A more desirable result in such situations would be to have some type of lightweight bedding to keep the patient warm while the patient is being carried on the stretcher, as retention of body heat can be critical. A mere sleeping bag could be used in such a situation, however, the patient would not be immediately accessible from all directions due to the use of zippers along one of two edges of the sleeping bag. Standard blankets are also not the most desirable apparatus in such a situation, because the blankets can be heavy and bulky to carry, and they may not easily stay in place while the stretcher is being carried, and the blankets may become soaked in situations where there is precipitation.